Lawmakers Demand Additional Info From FanDuel on VIP Program
Tonko joined two other lawmakers in asking FanDuel for details about celebrity videos, VIP customers and gambling-harm screening.

SOURCE CHECK
TAP FOR WHYCovers.com is a niche sports-betting publisher, but the article does not identify an author and the available text provides limited information about its editorial or correction practices. It attributes the lawmakers’ claims and includes FanDuel’s response.
- Source type — Niche sports-betting coverage provides relevant subject-matter focus, but the publisher is not identified as a general-news outlet.
- Author attribution — No author is identified.
- Source selection — The article reports the lawmakers’ account and summarizes FanDuel’s response.
- Editorial standards — The text provides no clear information about the publisher’s standards or corrections practice.
The article provides specific details about the lawmakers’ requests and summarizes FanDuel’s response, while attributing key claims. The account relies substantially on the lawmakers’ letter and offers limited direct detail from FanDuel beyond its stated defense.
HOW WE SCORE ↗The article includes FanDuel’s stated defense and Harper’s denial, but most of the detail and quoted material comes from the lawmakers’ concerns and demands.
- Counterarguments presented — FanDuel’s response and Harper’s denial are included, though neither receives the same detail as the lawmakers’ requests.
- Source diversity — The story draws on statements from lawmakers, FanDuel and Harper, but relies heavily on the lawmakers’ letter.
- Loaded language — Strong terms are mostly quoted or attributed to the lawmakers rather than adopted as the article’s own verdict.
The article reports the lawmakers’ concerns and FanDuel’s stated response in mostly straightforward language, without a clear partisan framing.
- Language tone — Mostly factual wording, with charged descriptions such as “predatory promotions” presented as attributed claims.
- Source selection — Includes the lawmakers’ criticisms and FanDuel’s defense of its VIP program.
- Framing — Frames the story around an information request and the company’s responses, not a party-political argument.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal and Reps. Paul Tonko and Valerie Foushee demanded more information from FanDuel about celebrity videos sent to customers in its VIP program, including whether the messages targeted people experiencing gambling harm.
The lawmakers said FanDuel’s responses had not answered their questions about personalized celebrity messages and whether information gathered to identify gambling harm was also used to target bettors. FanDuel said it had sent about 30 celebrity videos to customers as a “token of appreciation.”
In a letter, the lawmakers requested copies of the videos, customers’ betting records, information about self-exclusion requests and how VIP accounts were handled. They also asked what the athletes and celebrities knew about how the videos would be used, and requested a response by Oct. 20. The article also reports that Bryce Harper said he did not know his Cameo video would be used in a FanDuel promotion.
Community verdict
20 VOTESPeople in this story
SWIPE →Representative seeking information from FanDuel about its VIP program
Representative seeking information from FanDuel about its VIP program
Foushee's version of this story ↗Senator seeking information from FanDuel about its VIP program
Blumenthal's version of this story ↗Discussion · 0
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